


Kiss me once (and a thousand times more)

by HopeSilverheart



Series: Loving Em at 2AM [70]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alpha Derek Hale, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And that thing is a kiss, Boys In Love, But only in the kiss sense, Derek Hale is a Softie, Everyone else is a little shit, First Date, First Kiss, Fluff, Humor, Implied Sexual Content, Lots of it, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pack Dynamics, Sexual Tension, Slow Build, Stiles & Derek both deserve nice things, Stiles Stilinski is Not Amused, Stiles Stilinski is a Tease, interruptions, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:06:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25659445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HopeSilverheart/pseuds/HopeSilverheart
Summary: He took a deep breath, ready to say something, anything that would make things go a little bit faster, that would make Derek break and give Stiles what he really wanted, and then-“Yo, big bro!”Stiles jumped out of his seat and knocked his head on the car’s ceiling as Cora appeared to his left, her head peeking into the jeep through the open window. She was smiling brightly at the two of them but, if the mischievous smirk on her face was anything to go by, she knew exactly what she had interrupted by showing up unannounced.Or: 5 times Stiles and Derek's first kiss is interrupted + 1 time it isn't
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Series: Loving Em at 2AM [70]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1764400
Comments: 15
Kudos: 338





	Kiss me once (and a thousand times more)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thatnerdemryn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatnerdemryn/gifts).



“You’re not getting any better at this, Hale.”

Stiles burst into giggles as Derek poked him in the ribs, momentarily letting go of his controller and only making things worse for himself. Stiles couldn’t even be mad that Derek made _him_ drop his controller along the way, because he was willing to lose just about any game if it meant Derek kept on touching him.

Honestly, he wasn’t sure when game nights with Derek had become a thing. The pack was stable, the city was mostly safe for the moment, and they didn’t have any supernatural problems that needed their immediate attention. Back when they had still been dealing with the Alpha pack, Stiles had understood the necessity of having Derek in his room every few days, dealing with the situation at hand. Afterwards, it had taken the two of them a week or so to realise they actually enjoyed each other’s company and wanted to see more of each other, and game night had been born.

The thing was Derek was _terrible_ at video games. He loved movies, was a huge comic geek, and knew absurd facts that could rival even Stiles’, but video games were so far out of his comfort zone it was slightly hilarious.

Case in point: Mario Kart. One of the easiest games to get used to, and yet one at which Derek kept failing. After three months of Stiles trying to teach him how to play, they had both given up and decided to let him do whatever the hell his controller made him do. It certainly made for fun games.

It also made for wonderful stories in which Derek and Stiles were the main characters, and Stiles wasn’t going to complain about _that_. Especially not since his father, although still leery of letting a 22-year-old man spend time with his 17-year-old son, had finally warmed up to Derek enough to ask them about their evenings together.

The only thing Stiles never mentioned to anyone, not even to Scott, was the way butterflies erupted in his stomach and heart every time Derek tickled him or linked their fingers together absentmindedly or touched Stiles in a myriad of other innocent but entrancing ways.

Just like he was now, setting Stiles’ heart on fire.

“Maybe I’m just letting you win,” Derek said once they got back to their game, both losing to the computer players that had zoomed past them during their brief moment of distraction. “After all, I wouldn’t want to have to deal with a frustrated gaming partner just because I finally beat him fair and square.”

“That implies that you could win in a different way, you know?” Stiles pointed out, laying back on his bed and sighing as he came in 6th place, losing his first spot. “And I’m not sure you would even know how to cheat at Mario Kart. Except by doing what you just did, which was both completely ridiculous and also happened to impair your own capacities, so…”

“Is that a challenge I hear, Stilinski?” Derek raised his eyebrows, a hint of a smirk playing at his lips. Stiles almost swooned at the rare sight.

For all that he had gotten a lot better at talking to Stiles – during their game nights, since he was still annoyingly resilient when they were with the rest of the pack – he still didn’t smile much. Oh sure, he sometimes plastered a grin on his face to greet Stiles’ father, and he knew how to snort and chuckle and turn Stiles into a pile of goo with the slightest twitch of his lips, but his true smiles were something else.

It was almost as though they snuck up on him, as though he had no control over them and just _had_ to let them take over his features, and it was one of the things Stiles adored the most about him. Because for every smile he directed Stiles’ way, the younger man felt a little bit closer to the werewolf he was slowly but surely falling in love with.

“I’ve been challenging you from the very beginning,” Stiles snorted, pointing at the screen and at Derek’s consistent last position. “You’re just not doing a very good job at surpassing your teacher, although I’m not sure whether that’s your fault or mine.”

“I say it’s the controller,” Derek narrowed his eyes at the offending object, although they both knew the effort was useless. They had switched controllers several times already, Derek insisting that he would do better with Stiles’ and grumbling when he still lost. It was a recurring argument, and one that only endeared Stiles, so he never really minded when Derek brought it up.

“I’m not giving you the controller today,” he said, because he had already handed it to Derek the last two times the man had come over, and this was his lucky controller, goddamnit. “Except if you finally reveal your puppy eyes to me. I know you have them, I _know_ you do, because if anyone knows how to pull out the puppy eyes it’s a werewolf, and I won’t bend until I’ve seen it.”

The innuendo rushed into his mind before he could stop it, even though he knew his words would come off as completely innocent, and he had to fight away the image of Derek bending him over his bed and thoroughly ravishing him. It wasn’t like he had never had these sorts of thoughts with Derek around before, but he knew werewolves could smell arousal, and the last thing he wanted to deal with was an awkward moment with the man he could finally call his friend.

“Rematch?” Derek asked, ignoring the puppy-eye request the same way he always did. “Maybe this time will be the time. Maybe you’re right and I just need to get a little more creative with my cheating.”

“Oh please do,” Stiles grinned. “Because so far, I hadn’t even realised you were attempting to cheat. Since, you know, most people who cheat tend to _win_ as a result of their devious plans, and all you’ve done is get worse and worse as time passes.”

“That’s a complete lie and you know it,” Derek scoffed indignantly, turning to focus on the screen as the countdown to the first race began. “I’m going to destroy you, Stilinski, and I don’t want to hear a single complaint slip past your beautiful lips when it happens, you hear me? Not a single one.”

Stiles’ breath hitched and his gaze went hazy for a second as he imagined what else could be slipping past his lips. By the time he broke out of his trance, the race had started and Derek was driving up ahead of him. He gaped at the unusual sight and immediately pushed back another wave of arousal that threatened to overtake him at Derek’s new strategy.

He had to admit it was a good plan, although he couldn’t help but wonder whether Derek would have tried it with any of their friends, or if he was aware of how much Stiles liked him. Honestly, he wasn’t sure which option he preferred.

Their first lap was one of Stiles’ worst Mario Kart games ever. He managed to surpass Derek, but just barely, and every time he tried to get further ahead, Derek would drop a seemingly accidental innuendo and smirk privately as soon as he thought Stiles wasn’t looking. It was infuriating, and Stiles loved every second of it. He was used to words and was already compiling the lines Derek was using on him to create the perfect comebacks at a later date.

In fact, by the end of the first lap, Stiles was giving back as good as he got, which resulted in both Derek and he trailing behind the rest of the drivers miserably, losing by a long shot. And even though Stiles was usually one of the most competitive human beings in the world, he couldn’t have cared less. The air between Derek and he was growing heavy in the best way, and he almost moaned when they started the second lap and Derek upped his game.

Because apparently, lap 2 meant _touch_. Stiles hadn’t known whether or not Derek had realised how addicted he was to the older man’s touch, but he had his answer now. Derek let his legs stretch out on the bed and gently press against Stiles’, their hips and thighs and calves touching in a way that made Stiles lose his breath.

Just like that, he was losing again and this time, Derek clearly wasn’t going to let him get in the lead. His foot brushed up against Stiles’ calf a few times, and if Stiles hadn’t already been turned on by the innuendos and the jokes and the intense looks Derek sent his way every few seconds, he was definitely turned on _now_.

“Derek,” he growled as they started the third lap and the werewolf all but climbed onto Stiles’ lap, staring at him innocently as Stiles tried to look over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of the screen. He could have simply pushed the man away, but they both knew he was too touch-starved and eager for Derek’s attention to do that. “Derek, seriously, I can’t see anything.”

“Oh I’m sorry,” Derek said softly, his hair tickling Stiles’ cheek as he moved ever-so-slightly. “Would you rather I leave?”

He _knew_. He knew how much Stiles liked him, and he was taking shameless advantage of it. Their shoulders were pressed together, their legs intertwined, Derek’s face right in front of Stiles’, and the older man knew exactly what he was doing. This wasn’t just some foolish attempt at blocking Stiles’ view; this was Derek letting Stiles know that the tension floating in between them was very real and very much intentional.

When the race ended with Stiles in last place and Derek at a proud 10th, the younger man couldn’t even be mad, not with the way Derek was grinning at him. God, he wished the werewolf did that more often. He wished their true friendship wasn’t limited to these four walls, and that Stiles could hold Derek’s hand even when there were other people around. And more than anything, he wished he didn’t have to call Derek his friend when his heart was aching for something more.

He was too young, he knew. Waiting until he was 18 was the best move. It was the only way to make sure nothing he and Derek did could be viewed in a negative light. Of course, there would always be people who would judge them for their age difference, but things would be better if Stiles was legally an adult. Which meant waiting, something Stiles was terrible at.

But no matter how impatient he was, he had never been tempted to do anything before this very moment, because he had never realised his feelings might be requited until _right then_. Derek and he were still sitting close to each other, their breaths mingling as Derek turned his head to the side so he could meet Stiles’ heavy gaze with his own victorious look.

It was everything Stiles had ever wanted, or at least everything he had dreamed of ever since Derek had stopped acting like an asshole to him, and it was right there.

Derek’s eyes flicked down to Stiles’ mouth, and Stiles inadvertently did the same thing, his pupils dilating at the sight of Derek’s lips. He leaned forward before he could really think about it, and Derek did the same on his end. Neither of them was breathing anymore, too focused on what was happening to think about their basic needs.

They were close, _so close_ , and in a few moments Stiles would finally get to kiss someone, finally get to kiss Derek, and it would all be-

The door to his bedroom swung open, and his dad’s eyes widened comically as he looked from Derek to Stiles and back again. Not that he had to look very far, since Derek was all but caging Stiles in with his arms and pinning him against the bed. Talk about compromising positions.

Derek sprung away from Stiles, a blush – an honest to god _blush_ – darkening his cheeks, and Stiles had to refrain from reaching out for him and dragging him down to finish what they had been trying to do.

And then he glanced at his dad, his incredulous and slightly angry-looking dad, and he knew there was no way they were going to get away with this. He could only hope that Derek wouldn’t be banned from the house for having molested a minor or whatever else his father assumed had been happening.

Stiles and Derek only had the time to exchange one panicked look before his dad was opening his mouth, shaking his head exasperatedly.

“Next time, leave the door open.”

And that was that. He left the room, not shutting the door behind him, and Stiles was left alone with Derek once again.

The younger man wanted to say something, wanted to make sure this hadn’t just been a spur of the moment kind of thing, but the moment was lost. He cursed himself for forgetting about his dad, cursed his dad for interrupting what could have been his first kiss, and cursed Derek for giving him hope.

* * *

They never talked about the almost-kiss again.

The tension between them got a lot more romantic and a lot less friendly but other than that, they stayed friends. Derek continued showing up at Stiles’ house once or twice a week, although the door remained annoyingly open every time. They still saw each other at pack meetings and when the local supernatural world needed their help, but Stiles was still 17 and Derek still treated him like more of a friend than anything else.

It was fine. It worked for the both of them and even though the looks they exchanged could never have been categorised as friendly, the rest of the world – bar Stiles’ dad, who clearly knew something was going on – remained ignorant of the shift in their relationship. Not that they had a relationship yet, of course, but there were feelings and stares and touches, and that said more about their friendship than anything else.

Honestly, Stiles sometimes doubted that anything would ever happen between he and Derek. After all, they worked perfectly well as friends, even though there were moments when Stiles wanted nothing more than to kiss the hell out of Derek, and there was a chance Derek would have lost interest by the time Stiles was old enough to be in his dating pool.

So, they never talked about the kiss. They never even hinted at anything that might have happened between the two of them that day. Derek never teased Stiles the way he had that evening, and Stiles never lost a game of Mario Kart again. Everything had seemingly gone back to normal.

And then the two of them were chosen to go on a stake out together after a neighbouring pack had sent vague threats to Erica. It wasn’t anything serious, and no one was really worried, but it was better to be safe than sorry, especially with a pack as relatively new as theirs.

Stiles hadn’t been particularly thrilled about having to spend a Friday night stuck in a car, but he supposed that it could have been worse. He could have been stuck in a car with _Boyd_ , for example. He loved Boyd, he really did, but even Scott wouldn’t have lived up to Derek and their game nights. So although a night spent in a car with Derek didn’t have anything on a night spent on his bed playing games with Derek, he knew it was the best he was going to get.

However, he had grossly underestimated how much tension could accumulate in his jeep. He and Derek had never really let their strange friendship cross the line of Stiles’ house, but even a human like him could tell there were serious levels of yearning going on inside the jeep at the moment. The two of them weren’t sitting anywhere near as close as they did when they were in the safety of Stiles’ room, and yet something about the jeep felt intimate.

Maybe it was because it was the first time he and Derek did something outside of his home, or maybe it was because the jeep was one of Stiles’ most beloved possessions. Either way, the stake out was turning into less of a pack mission and more into a mission of patience and persistence on Stiles’ part.

“It’s fucking hot in here,” he mumbled underneath his breath, pointedly ignoring Derek’s rumble of agreement. The last thing he needed was the sound of Derek’s voice right next to him, low and dark and heady, relaxed from the hour they had already spent together but high-strung from the energy rolling between the two of them. “Do you mind if I open the window?”

“You do realise the purpose of a stake out is to remain unnoticed, right?” Derek raised his eyebrows in Stiles’ direction. And yes, of course he knew that, but he was seconds away from either jumping on Derek or having a mild panic attack, and he could use a little bit of air. Clearly, Derek realised something was going on, because he nodded and didn’t say anything else as Stiles took a few big gulps of air once the windows were down. “You should have said something earlier.”

“I was fine earlier,” Stiles snapped, knowing he was being bitchy for no reason. He was frustrated with himself, not with Derek, but he had a tendency to accidentally project on other people when he was in one of his moods, and not even his feelings for the older man could stop him from slipping up. “I just needed a bit of air.”

“You looked like you were on the verge of a panic attack,” Derek said, concern shining brightly in his eyes. The last thing Stiles needed at the moment was a reminder of how good Derek was, how perfectly suited the two of them were, but that was apparently what he was going to get anyways. “I could finish this alone, if you would rather go home and relax.”

“I’m not going to leave you here alone,” Stiles rolled his eyes. “I’m anxious, not dying, and you know it’s pack rules not to leave anyone behind.”

“You wouldn’t be leaving me behind,” Derek huffed. “Besides, I’m the alpha. I make the rules.”

“And you wouldn’t be a good alpha if you didn’t respect them,” Stiles pointed out. “Look, I’m fine. I had a little moment of anxiety, and now it’s all better. It would be a lot better if I didn’t have to deal with how hot it is in this car, but I have a feeling that’s not about to change, so don’t worry about it.”

“We could turn on the AC,” Derek suggested.

“In the jeep? Buddy, do you have any idea how old this thing is? No, and neither do I, because it’s older than either of us and only works by the grace of God or something along those lines,” Stiles chuckled, already feeling better now that they were talking and not just ignoring each other and trying to act like everything was completely normal. “Trust me, you don’t want to try turning on the AC. Besides, it’s cool enough outside that the temperature will be brought back down sooner rather than later, and then we’ll only have to deal with the _other_ type of heat.”

Derek didn’t say anything, but Stiles didn’t miss the way his hands tightened around the steering wheel at the younger man’s words. Good to know Stiles wasn’t the only one who could feel the tension, then. And good to know he wasn’t imagining things either.

“We really shouldn’t be talking about this,” Derek mumbled, defiantly not looking at Stiles. “Especially not when we’re alone, in your car, in the middle of the night.”

“Regretting your choice of partner already, Hale?” Stiles teased him, knowing it would push all the right buttons inside Derek’s mind. Just as he had planned, the werewolf shivered at his use of the word ‘ _partner_ ’ and bit down on his bottom lip as Stiles drawled out his last name. It was the only type of flirting they allowed themselves, or at least the only type of flirting Derek allowed himself, and every reaction Stiles could pull out of him made him feel euphoric. “Maybe you should have just gone with Scott. He would probably be sleeping by now, and you wouldn’t have to deal with me and my frustratingly good conversational skills.”

“I could never regret my choice of partner. Not when it’s you, at least,” Derek breathed out, sending Stiles’ heart into overdrive.

Sometimes, in moments just like these, Derek would forget about the restrictions he had set upon himself and let the words slip past his lips before he could overthink them. Sometimes, he would remind Stiles of just _why_ the younger man was so in love with him, and then go back to acting as though nothing had happened. It made Stiles’ blood boil, and it made his soul sing.

“Now who’s the one talking about things we shouldn’t be talking about,” Stiles sing-songed, desperately trying to let the moment pass without making the tension between them even worse – even _better_ , his mind supplied.

“Yes well, you were tempting me,” Derek rolled his eyes, looking over at Stiles and glancing down at their hands. Stiles hadn’t even realised they had interlaced their fingers at some point, but he wasn’t exactly surprised. It had become a bit of a habit of his to grab onto whatever part of Derek was closest to him. “Besides, we’re just taking care of the stake out. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Stiles barely held back a snort. He knew Derek was mostly trying to convince himself, but it didn’t make the situation any less funny. There was something extremely sweet about the way Derek insisted on waiting. They had never talked about it, since the _thing_ between them was mostly a given and not something they ever mentioned out loud, but Stiles knew Derek was waiting for him to turn eighteen. Or maybe he was waiting for him to be sure of where their relationship was heading. Either way, he was waiting.

And as much self-control as it took for Stiles to not kiss Derek, he knew it must take even more effort on the wolf’s part, and he couldn’t help but admire him for it. Which was why he knew teasing Derek further wouldn’t end well.

“Do you think this will lead to anything?” He asked instead, gesturing towards the house in which their night’s target was sleeping. “Or are we just going to have spent an entire night stirring in our own sweat for no reason?”

“I think it was a necessary evil,” Derek sighed. “But I also don’t think she’s going to do anything, and I’ll probably need to have a word with Erica about what counts as a threat to the pack and what doesn’t. I’ve heard she’s had a few run-ins with this girl before, and this was just the tip of the iceberg, so I’ll make sure she knows we don’t want to hear about her personal issues except if they’re life-threatening.”

“For all you know, this girl could be one of the most dangerous wolves in her pack,” Stiles shrugged, although he knew the chances of that being true were very low. “Besides, there’s something to be said about spending an entire night with my favourite alpha, so I’m not going to complain too much.”

“I’m your only alpha, Stiles,” Derek said dryly, but Stiles could tell he was biting back a pleased smile, and that was more than enough for him.

“And?” Stiles raised his eyebrows, unimpressed. “My point still stands. Even without the thing we’re not talking about right now, you have to admit this would be a pretty nice evening. A night out with another member of the pack? It must be a dream come true for you.”

“It’s a dream come true because _you’re_ my partner,” Derek corrected, and Stiles cursed internally at how hard the older man was making things. He was trying, truly trying, to keep things simple between the two of them, but Derek was making him reconsider his plans to stay away from his alpha’s lips. “I promise I wouldn’t have been half as happy if one of the others had tagged along, no matter how much I may or may not care for them.”

“Come on, buddy, that’s just not fair,” Stiles whined lightly, counting it as a point in his favour when Derek jerked in his seat at the noise. “You’re doing it on purpose now, don’t think I haven’t caught onto your little game! You’re over there telling me not to make things harder, pun absolutely intended, and then you go ahead and say things that make me want to kiss you again, even though you’ve made it clear we’re not supposed to be doing th- Right?”

Derek was staring at him as though he wasn’t sure whether he wanted to kiss him or kick him, and Stiles would be lying if he said it didn’t make him even more turned on. Seriously, the two of them had a problem. It shouldn’t have been this hard for two men to stay away from each other, or at least not want to jump each other all the time. Maybe it was a pack thing. Maybe things were more intense for them because they already shared another bond, even if it was only metaphorical on Stiles’ end.

Or maybe they had just been holding themselves back for too long. The air between them was charged, even more so than it had been a few minutes earlier, and Stiles wasn’t even the one to blame. They were staring at each other again, further apart than they had been on that fateful night of the kiss-that-wasn’t but still close enough that they could lean in and meet in the middle if that was what they really wanted.

Stiles’ lips were already parted, and Derek’s pupils were blown, and they weren’t anywhere near as close to kissing as they had been the previous time, but they were still… They still both wanted it to happen, that much was clear. If Stiles had been a kitsune like Kira, he was sure electricity would have been sparking between them like crazy.

He took a deep breath, ready to say something, _anything_ that would make things go a little bit faster, that would make Derek break and give Stiles what he really wanted, and then-

“Yo, big bro!”

Stiles jumped out of his seat and knocked his head on the car’s ceiling as Cora appeared to his left, her head peeking into the jeep through the open window. She was smiling brightly at the two of them but, if the mischievous smirk on her face was anything to go by, she knew exactly what she had interrupted by showing up unannounced.

She went on to tell Derek that she had stopped by to relieve Stiles of his duties for a while, and she looked so earnestly eager to spend some time with her brother that Stiles didn’t have the heart to say no. And just like last time, the moment was lost.

* * *

Unlike the previous time, however, the almost-kiss was _not_ ignored.

They still didn’t talk about it, because Derek was a man of actions and not of words, but something had clearly changed between them. Stiles had no idea what had made Derek stop being as reluctant as he had been in the past, but he definitely wasn’t complaining.

The touches that had once been innocent turned into something more. They held hands more often, cuddled more often when they were in Stiles’ bedroom – although they never went further, in fear of being interrupted by Stiles’ dad again – and Derek slowly started treating Stiles more carefully around the rest of the pack.

Maybe it was something Stiles had done or said that night, or maybe it was something Cora had added once the younger man was gone, but things were different. Because now, instead of acting like he didn’t want to kiss Stiles, Derek acted like he _always_ wanted to kiss him. He sent him heated looks and longing looks and let his fingers linger just long enough that Stiles wanted to kiss the smug look off his face every single time. He spent more time with Stiles than he ever had before and, if he didn’t know any better, Stiles would have said he was being wooed.

Well, there was actually a good chance that was exactly what was happening, but he wasn’t quite ready to think about how _big_ of a step that would be on Derek’s part. Dating would have been one thing, but this strange dance they were navigating through at the moment was different, and Stiles didn’t know whether he hated or loved it. Maybe it was a bit of both.

And maybe he only hated it because, despite how clear it was that Derek wanted to kiss him, that very first kiss just did not want to happen. Every time the two of them managed to find themselves alone, something would get in their way and make it impossible for them to get back in the mood. Sometimes it would be a call, sometimes it would be one of their friends walking into the room and, on one memorable occasion, even the weather had stopped them from having their moment.

Stiles had found it amusing at first, but now he was just plain annoyed.

Pack meetings had become something of a torture session for him, since it was the one time of the week when he couldn’t sit next to Derek whilst the two of them were in the same room. He knew their friends had finally caught onto whatever was going on, and he couldn’t help but wonder if their interruptions had become less of a coincidence and more of an active attempt at cockblocking Stiles and Derek.

Either way, pack meetings were a lot less fun now that Stiles had to physically refrain from reaching out for Derek. The two of them had always sat next to each other in some unspoken agreement, but during their first meeting after the stake-out night, Stiles sat as far away from Derek as was physically possible. He knew the other man found it more amusing than anything, but it was also the only thing that kept Stiles sane.

Well that and the fact that he didn’t want their first kiss to happen in front of anyone, no matter how much he cared about the rest of the pack.

“… groups of werewolves and non-werewolves,” Stiles tuned back into the conversation just as Derek levelled him with a significant look. It took him a second to realise he was waiting for Stiles to add his input, and a second longer to understand what they were talking about.

“Right!” He exclaimed, ignoring all of his friends’ amused looks. “Things in Beacon Hills have calmed down considerably, which means we now have plenty of time to make sure us non-werewolves are just as capable of defending ourselves as the werewolves are. Derek has come up with a pairing system and some sort of rotation wheel that makes training possible, and no one gets to complain.”

Not that anyone would, since they all liked and respected each other enough to make sure protection was taken seriously. Lydia, Danny, and Stiles – as well as Stiles’ dad and Melissa, although on a less intense level – would be taken care of and trained to the best of everyone else’s capacity.

“This just sounds like an excuse for Derek to spend time with you,” Jackson pointed out, smirking when Stiles blushed deeply.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but Derek and I spend plenty of time together as it is,” Stiles rolled his eyes. “Besides, did you not hear the part about a rotation wheel?”

“I have a feeling that rotation wheel won’t be quite as balanced when it comes to you,” Cora grinned sharply, chuckling when her brother swatted the back of her head lightly. “Just saying, maybe the two of you shouldn’t be allowed to work together, just to make sure Stiles actually _learns_ something.”

“I resent that implication, Hale!” Stiles exclaimed, even though he was smiling just as brightly as her, more than a little pleased that Derek’s sister clearly didn’t mind the idea of a relationship between Derek and him. “I’m sure I could learn more from an alpha than from any of you betas.”

“Yeah, if you could keep it in your pants for longer than two minutes,” Erica snorted.

Stiles knew this could have gone on for hours, but Derek actually cared about pack meetings and one sharp glare from him was enough to have everyone else shutting up and getting back on track with the topics they had decided to broach that day. Still, everyone could tell the sexual tension in the room had spiked up after their conversation, and no one was surprised when Stiles and Derek politely excused themselves to have a private discussion in the kitchen once everyone was done speaking.

Stiles wasn’t sure why they hadn’t just kissed already. After all, it would have been easy enough to lean in closer to Derek and press his lips to the werewolf’s and be done with it. Then their first kiss would be taken care of and they would be able to start acting like a normal couple, or as normal as Stiles and Derek could ever be.

Instead, they were dancing around each other as though they were waiting for something to happen, and Stiles had no idea what that something was. Or at least, that was what he liked to tell himself when he was longing for Derek’s lips at completely inappropriate times of the day.

And then he remembered the moments they had shared, heavy and heady and everything he had ever dreamed of having for his first kiss, and he knew exactly why Derek hadn’t just said ‘ _screw it_ ’ and kissed Stiles. He was waiting for another moment, another window of opportunity, and Stiles couldn’t even say that he was angry about it because at least their first kiss would be perfect.

He just wished perfect would come sooner rather than later.

“Well, that was something,” he said as Derek wandered around the kitchen in search of the chocolate biscuits he liked to eat after pack meetings. “They’re in the same cupboard as always, Hale. To your left. _No_ , to your left, yes, right there. And no, I don’t know why you decide to keep them there since you can never remember where they are.”

“Because _you_ know where they are,” Derek shrugged as though it was the most logical explanation in the world. And in a way… In a way, maybe it was.

“Planning on keeping me around?” Stiles teased, as though he didn’t already know the answer to that question.

No matter how strange their relationship was, they were both aware that it was more than just a high school crush on Stiles’ part, and more than teasing on Derek’s. He wouldn’t go as far as to say they were soulmates, because he wasn’t _that much_ of a hopeless romantic, but it was a damn near thing.

“If I didn’t want you around, you would have been kicked out a long time ago,” Derek snorted, brandishing the pack of biscuits victoriously and flushing a dark red as he noticed Stiles’ eyes on him. “Don’t say it.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything,” Stiles laughed, raising his hands up in surrender when Derek flashed his eyes at him warningly. “You know that trick stopped working on me months ago, right? If you want me to be afraid of you, you’re going to have to improve your tactics, because fear is the last thing I’m feeling right now.”

“I’m well aware,” Derek grit his teeth, his nostrils flaring and sending another flash of heat through Stiles’ body. “ _Stiles_ , for fuck’s sake, the others are only a room away.”

“I think we both know I’m not the problem here,” Stiles chuckled, biting down on a whimper when Derek all but growled at him. “Seriously, I’m supposed to be the teenager here, shouldn’t you be the one with a bit more self-control? Not that I’m complaining, per say, but you did wisely point out that there is currently an entire pack of werewolves listening in on our conversation right now.”

“They’d better not be listening,” Derek said dangerously, his tone doing absolutely _nothing_ to help Stiles’ sudden case of arousal. If anything, the words only turned him on more. “God, Stiles, you have no idea how tempting you are right now, do you? The things I could do to you…”

“You’re such a tease,” Stiles huffed, stepping closer to Derek and grinning mischievously when the werewolf tensed, his claws digging into the biscuits and sending crumbs flying everywhere. “Oh, someone’s got a bit of a hair-trigger tonight, huh? Tell me, what would you do if I took another step? Would you finally stop acting like such a gentleman and give me what I want, or would you be as frustratingly patient as usual?”

“Patient?” Derek laughed brokenly, holding his breath as Stiles walked closer and stopped right in front of the older man. “Stiles, we shouldn’t be doing this.”

“Shouldn’t we?” Stiles pouted, blinking at Derek guilelessly and hoping he hadn’t lost the ‘innocent look’ Lydia had told him about a few months earlier. “See, I’m not really sure why we’re holding back anymore. Yes, I’m technically still a minor, but what are a couple of weeks or months going to change? And yes, our friends are around, but they’re _pack_ , and they’re all in favour of whatever is going on between us to become something more. As for you and me, well… Are you really going to try and convince me that you don’t want this as much as I do? How many moments will it take before you finally give in, Derek?”

The alpha was a second away from caving and giving them both what they wanted, Stiles was sure of it. His pupils were dilated, his eyes flashing red, and the biscuits in his hands had turned to dust under the onslaught of his superhuman strength. Stiles licked his lips, knowing it would only make Derek want him more, _praying_ that it would make him want Stiles more.

God, it felt like he had been waiting for this moment for years, even though it couldn’t have been that long – in his dreams, maybe, but definitely not in real life. Derek was inches away from him, and Stiles was already smiling, his eyes half-closed as he waited for his alpha to do something.

Derek’s crumb-covered hand moved to curl around Stiles’ waist, his eyelids fluttered, his eyelashes brushing against Stiles’ face, and Stiles was barely breathing by the time he leaned in to close the distance between them and-

“ _Seriously,_ Derek? You know those biscuits are my favourite!”

The two men sprang apart hurriedly, cursing colourfully as Erica appeared in the doorway, Cora on her heels, both of them wearing matching grins. Derek was radiating frustration and borderline anger, and Stiles wasn’t doing much better. The growl that escaped him as he realised how conveniently timed the girls’ entrance had been surprised everyone in the room, himself included.

“Ooh,” Cora’s grin turned feral as she glanced between Derek and him. “Picking up habits from each other already? I’d have thought that would wait until _after_ you two had kissed, and as far as I’m aware…”

“I swear Cora, if you say one more word,” Derek said lowly. This time, when his eyes flashed red, Stiles knew it had nothing to do with arousal and everything to do with yet another interruption. “Get out, both of you, or I swear I’m kicking you out for the night and letting you sleep on the street.”

“You would _never_ ,” Cora gasped, but neither her nor Erica looked convinced, and they backed out of the kitchen quickly, grimacing apologetically in Stiles’ direction.

The apology would have been slightly more appreciated if Stiles couldn’t hear the two of them giggling uncontrollably as they raced to the other side of the loft, the laughter doubling as they joined the rest of the pack. Stiles understood their amusement, he truly did, but he was having a hard time reminding himself that killing one of his friends wouldn’t achieve anything.

“You’d better _destroy_ them during your next training session,” he grumbled instead, his lips slowly curling into another fond smile as Derek nodded determinedly. “And maybe… Maybe we could go on a date, try to move things along a little more actively?”

“Yeah,” Derek breathed out. “Maybe we should do that.”

* * *

Stiles stood on his front porch nervously, his hands fidgeting with the hem of his button-up as he waited for Derek to arrive.

The alpha – his friend, partner, future boyfriend? It was hard to tell given the strangeness of their relationship – had told Stiles he would meet him promptly at 7, and Stiles had been keeping an eye on his phone as he tapped his foot against the concrete anxiously. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Derek would show up, because _of course_ he would. However, Stiles may have failed to tell Derek that he had never actually been on a date before, what with his unfortunate pining after Lydia and his subsequent crush on a surly werewolf.

It wouldn’t be a problem, he knew, and Derek would be the perfect gentleman all night long, but Stiles couldn’t help the flutter of panic in his stomach as he thought about everything that could go wrong.

Even though they had spent plenty of time together at his house, Stiles wasn’t foolish enough to think this would be the same thing. For one, his father wouldn’t be there to interrupt them – and neither would the pack, fortunately – and… Well, it was a _date_. It was an actual declaration of their romantic intentions, proof that what they had wasn’t just an extremely close friendship.

He barely refrained from biting his fingernails as Derek’s Camaro came zooming around the bend, looking as sleek as ever. Stiles wasn’t ashamed to say that one of his favourite sights in the world was Derek driving, because _damn_ if it wasn’t one of the hottest things he had ever seen. Just the thought of getting into the car had his palms turning clammy and his mouth drying up, and _god_ he was a mess.

They shouldn’t have waited this long to act on their feelings, because Stiles was almost certain – or at least 60% certain – that he wouldn’t have been quite as nervous if their date had happened three months earlier.

“Are you going to join me, or are you just going to stare all night?” Stiles’ head snapped up towards Derek as he pulled himself out of his thoughts. He hadn’t even realised the car had been pulled over, too busy imagining all the things he and Derek could get up to whilst they were hidden by the Camaro’s tinted windows. “Stiles?”

“Right, sorry,” Stiles blushed deeply, slipping into the passenger seat before his thoughts could take another turn towards blasphemy.

In the end, it didn’t matter; his brain short-circuited as soon as he got an eyeful of Derek. The man was always gorgeous, and Stiles had long gotten used to the fact that the werewolf would always turn him into a puddle of want, but he had never had a reaction _this_ intense before. He blamed it on the green dress shirt that brought out Derek’s eyes and stretched across the man’s shoulders enticingly. Really, he couldn’t be blamed for his utter inability to speak, not when Derek looked like _that_.

“I’ll never cease to be amazed by my apparent talent to make you speechless,” Derek said teasingly, grinning at Stiles when the younger man narrowed his eyes at him. “I find it adorable, Stiles, don’t worry.”

“I don’t want you to find me adorable,” Stiles pouted, because he wasn’t a _child_ , thank you very much. He was almost an adult, and he needed Derek to see him as one if this relationship was going to work. “And maybe you should be driving instead of trying to get me to blush even more.”

“Or I could be doing both at once,” Derek’s grin widened, and Stiles couldn’t stop himself from smiling right back at the man, feeling decidedly less nervous now that their evening had gotten off to such a good start.

It only got better from there.

Stiles had been worried that Derek would take him to a restaurant he didn’t know and that he would have to deal with a menu he could barely understand or the staff’s judgemental stares, but he should have known better. Derek took them straight to their favourite diner, a lovely place tucked away at the edge of Beacon Hills and the only restaurant – and _yes_ , Jackson, it _did_ count as a restaurant – Stiles visited semi-regularly.

As if he had needed any more reasons to love the man. Derek didn’t play fair, and Stiles was going to need to up his game if he wanted to be half as good at this relationship thing as Derek clearly was.

They chose a cosy booth at the back of the diner, huddled close together without even _trying_ to pretend like they wanted to do anything other than cuddle, and grinned at each other happily as they ordered their food. He knew they were being ridiculous, but Stiles couldn’t have cared less. Derek and he had been circling around each other for months, and the least they deserved was a nice date where they could laugh and flirt and act like they hadn’t been dealing with the worst case of blue balls because of their friends.

Not that Stiles was particularly in the mood to think about their friends at the moment, since he was a little too busy staring at Derek and admiring the way he lit up now that they had finally put a – tentative – name to their relationship. _Dating_ wasn’t exactly the committed relationship either of them were going for, but Stiles knew pushing Derek too far too fast wouldn’t lead to anything good.

He would earn the boyfriend title in no time. All he needed to do was get through this date and finally receive the kiss he had been waiting for. After that, Derek would have to be an idiot to let him go.

(Or, more likely, Stiles simply _wouldn’t_ let him go.)

“What are you smiling about?” Derek asked as Stiles thanked the waitress who had taken care of them during their meal and generously tipped her. It was is way of getting back at Derek for paying before Stiles could do anything more than blink at the check.

“I’m smiling at you, idiot,” Stiles rolled his eyes. “Or should I just keep a frown on my face and pretend like this date was awful so you’ll try and make it up to me with a kiss or two?”

“If you think a kiss is the best I can do, you’ve got another thing coming for you,” Derek murmured. Stiles had to bite down on his tongue to stop himself from moaning at what Derek was suggesting, but he knew his scent was probably already reeking of arousal. Not that Derek seemed to mind, if the way he licked his lips was anything to go back. In that moment, he looked every bit like the werewolf and predator Stiles knew he was. It shouldn’t have been so hot, but _damn_ if it wasn’t one of the most attractive things Stiles had had to deal with in the past few months.

And he had had to look after a shirtless Derek, so that was really saying something.

“You really shouldn’t be looking at me like that whilst we’re in public,” Stiles finally said, sounding a tad too winded considering the only thing they had been doing so far was talking. “In fact, let me rephrase that; you shouldn’t be looking at me like that when we’re not in one of our bedrooms.”

“But that takes the fun out of it,” Derek smirked, swinging his arm over Stiles’ shoulder gracefully and pulling him even further into his side as they stood. Derek’s breath ghosted over the shell of Stiles’ ear, and he shivered in anticipation. “The best part about being with someone is the foreplay, baby.”

Stiles squawked ineloquently and _jumped_ away from Derek at the older man’s words, unable to calm his thumping heart and unable to look away from Derek’s delighted gaze. Good to know his reaction was pleasing at least one of them.

“Oh, do you like that?” Derek whispered as he laced their fingers together and started dragging Stiles out of the diner and back towards the Camaro. “Do you like it when I call you baby? You know, for someone who likes to give me the most ridiculous nicknames, you sure have simple tastes when it comes to yourself.”

“You just called me _baby_ , Derek,” Stiles hissed, reluctantly stepping closer to Derek as the cold evening air seeped into his clothes. “I feel like I’m allowed to have a little moment to process that and act like you didn’t just turn my world upside down.”

“So you _do_ like it,” Derek concluded with an amused smile. Stiles was appalled to realise he didn’t even feel the slightest hint of frustration at the sight, only an urge to shut the werewolf up by kissing him. Which, well, was sort of the entire point of their night out. That and finally having some time to themselves without parents or siblings or pack members around.

He stayed silent as they reached the Camaro and only hesitated for an instant before leaning against the car, not making a move to step in. The gesture clearly wasn’t lost on Derek, whose eyes widened minutely before turning blood red. One of their conversations from dinner flitted back into Stiles’ mind, something about boundaries and privacy and intimacy, and fondness flooded his stomach as he realised that Derek showing him his wolf side was his way of telling Stiles he trusted him.

With that in mind, it was all too easy to reach out for the older man and loop his arms around Derek’s neck, his gaze never leaving Derek’s.

“So… The date was pretty nice, don’t you think?” He started softly, looking down at his feet for a second before raising his head again when Derek’s fingers gently tipped his chin up.

“The date was more than nice, Stiles,” the werewolf smiled, the expression so fond and soft and _beautiful_ on his features that Stiles momentarily forgot how to function. “We should have done this a lot sooner. It would have saved us a world of trouble.”

“That it would have,” Stiles chuckled. “But you have to admit the waiting only made this evening sweeter. I mean, I would have loved to kiss you all those weeks ago, but we could do worse than a first kiss on a first date.”

“A lot worse,” Derek hummed in agreement, tightening his hold on Stiles’ hips and pressing their foreheads together, breathing in what Stiles assumed was their mixed scent. “You have no idea how long I’ve been dreaming of this, baby, you and your annoyingly gorgeous eyes and-”

“Hale!”

Stiles was about to murder someone. He was _actually_ going to murder someone, and Chris Argent was as good a target as any, since he had apparently decided to ignore the fact that Stiles was currently pressed up against Derek’s car, seconds away from finally being kissed. He banged his head against the car frustratedly, not even caring when pain shot through his system.

“Please don’t damage the Camaro, Stiles,” Derek narrowed his eyes at the younger man, although Stiles could tell that he was also struggling to get himself under control.

“Oh right, because the Camaro is clearly the thing that matters most right now, not my wounded heart,” Stiles said dramatically, although he shut up when Argent appeared right behind Derek, looking between the two of them in what could have been interpreted as an apology.

Stiles politely chose to ignore the apology the same way Allison’s father had decided to ignore Derek’s current partner and position.

“Hale, I’m sorry to catch you at such a bad time, but I’ve been trying to contact your pack all evening and everyone’s been offline,” Argent winced, obviously aware that neither Derek nor Stiles was feeling particularly charitable at the moment. “I’ll leave the two of you alone, of course, but maybe you could direct me towards one of your other pack members so I can discuss the issue with them and leave you to your business?”

“Chris,” Derek said lowly, clenching his jaw and curling his hands into fists as he let go of Stiles and turned towards Argent instead. “Isaac and Scott are inside your house right now, probably hiding in a closet and acting as though they haven’t seen Allison in months because they’re afraid of what you might do to them if you find out. So please, for the love of god, go back to your house and to your daughter, and bring enough food to feed my two betas.”

“Why would I-”

“Look dude, if I were you I’d just walk away, get the food, and try to keep Scott and Isaac alive,” Stiles cut in before Derek well and truly snapped. “Seriously, _walk away_.”

The hunter looked like he was about to argue, possibly verbally destroy Stiles for daring to use anything other than his name whilst addressing him, but something on Derek’s face must have been truly terrifying, because he only nodded before speeding away without so much as a goodbye.

“Does no one in this town have any notion of privacy?” Stiles asked lightly, wondering if the mood was salvageable or if Argent had ruined his chances at getting his first kiss that night.

Given the murderous look on Derek’s face at the moment, he wasn’t going to hold his breath.

“I’m taking you home,” Derek mumbled, and Stiles sighed heavily as his date made his way towards the driver’s side of the Camaro, glowering and huffing about _goddamned hunters_ and _fucking Argents_ as he walked.

Stiles’ lips quirked into a small smile, but even Derek’s adorable annoyance wasn’t enough to lift his spirits again. The moment had been ruined once again, and Stiles was starting to feel like the universe was conspiring against them. Which was stupid, because Derek and he would make a _wonderful_ couple.

Well, the universe could go screw itself; maybe it was time for Stiles and Derek to go on a trip, spend a week-end alone in a nice cabin or something. Maybe _then_ , he would finally get to know what Derek tasted like.

* * *

Stiles had never learned to enjoy road trips the same way everyone in his class seemed to. Scott had told him about the week-end he had spent alone with Allison and Isaac, driving towards nothing and simply enjoying their time together, but Stiles hadn’t understood his excitement at the time – still didn’t, if he was being completely honest. Jackson, Lydia, and the rest of the pack had all agreed that road trips were one of the best things to do on a lazy summer day, yet Stiles failed to get it.

Sure, he was more than happy to be on the road with Derek, but he mostly just wanted to get to their destination already so he could kiss the hell out of the man – his boyfriend, as Derek had tentatively called him after their first date. Seeing the alpha drive was always nice, but Stiles had already been in the Camaro dozens of times before, and the appeal – although definitely still present – had lost of its charm.

It didn’t help that Derek was humming underneath his breath, his voice deep and warm and beautiful, making Stiles want to kiss him right there and then. To be fair, he had been wanting to kiss Derek _right there and then_ every second of every day for the past week.

It had been surprisingly easy to convince Derek to get them out of Beacon Hills, which Stiles thought was a testament as to how desperate they both were for some goddamned time alone. Still, they had had to wait until the week-end after their first date, since Stiles had to go to that pesky thing called school for another few months.

He had never hated high school as much as he had during the week that preceded his and Derek’s road trip to Sacramento.

“You’re really not meant for long drives, are you?” Derek chuckled thirty minutes into their trip. Stiles shot his boyfriend a deadpan look, completely unimpressed by the werewolf’s attempt at humour. “I’m not sure why I’m even surprised, since you can barely make it through a pack meeting without fidgeting with a pen or bouncing your legs up and down or standing up halfway through to stretch your legs.”

“It’s not my fault my brain and body refuse to stay still,” Stiles grumbled, pouting slightly when Derek only grinned. “Besides, it’s not like you’re much better. Don’t think I can’t see you vibrating in your skin over there, and that I haven’t noticed all the looks you’ve sent me ever since we left my house.”

“You _purposefully_ chose that shirt, Stiles,” Derek glared, the look coming off less as irritated and more as hungry. “You know what it did to me, and yet you still decided to wear it.”

“Well yeah, that’s the whole point,” Stiles grinned mischievously, winking at Derek when the alpha turned to growl at him playfully. “Oh yes, _bite me_. Come on, show me what you’ve got.”

Derek’s grip on the steering wheel tightened to the point where Stiles was almost certain there were claws involved, and his smile turned into a smug smirk at the sight. So what if he had a thing for making his boyfriend lose control over his wolf? It always fascinated him to see what made Derek tick and what didn’t. It was his own way of getting his boyfriend flustered, since Derek so rarely blushed or gave any outward signs of his attraction for Stiles.

“I’m driving, Stiles,” Derek raised his eyebrows, his eyes turning back to their usual hazel as he took a few deep breaths, steadying himself. “You can’t say things like that when I’m driving, especially since it’s illegal to pull over on the highway for no reason.”

“Shame,” Stiles sighed, but relented and dutifully shut his mouth. They would have to stop to take a break at _some_ point, and he could wait that long until he started up on the teasing again.

The thing was, Stiles hated staying silent. He had never liked emptiness in conversations, had always sought to fill voids with his own voice, had always thrived to make sure no silence was ever awkward. Usually, he would just strike up a conversation with whoever his partner was and save the day, but with Derek… When Stiles was with Derek, he couldn’t focus on anything else but the man himself. And since Derek had made it clear that Stiles was supposed to lay off on the compliments and flirting until they were no longer driving, he wasn’t sure what else to say.

The only words filtering through his brain at the moment were thoughts on how beautiful Derek looked in the morning sun, or how pretty his eyes – both hazel and red – were when he stared at Stiles like he mattered, or how much Stiles wanted to bury himself in the older man’s strong arms and never leave him. His mouth opened and closed a few times as he tried to find something else to say, to prove to himself that he _could_ forget about how much he already loved Derek for a few moments.

(He didn’t let himself think about how right ‘love’ felt in the context of his and Derek’s relationship.)

“When are we taking a break?” He finally asked, unable to stay quiet for a second longer. He was dying to say something or to reach out for his boyfriend, and he knew neither of those were reasonable options at the moment. But _god_ , he wanted them to be options. “Actually, scratch that, we’re taking a break.”

“You’re awfully bossy for a man currently sitting in the passenger seat of _my_ car,” Derek snorted, although Stiles grinned when he settled back into the right lane, clearly getting ready to stop at the next gas station. “Don’t look so smug, we’re only going to be stopping for a couple of minutes, certainly not enough time to do whatever it is you have in mind.”

“Who says I have anything in mind?” He said innocently, knowing he wasn’t fooling anyone. Derek obviously agreed, since he didn’t even deign to answer Stiles, only rolling his eyes exasperatedly at the younger man’s antics.

Stiles couldn’t have cared less though, because what he had in mind would only take a couple of minutes maximum, and then Derek wouldn’t want to stop and they would be able to keep going for a while longer until they were finally forced to head back onto the road. As far as first kisses went, Stiles thought they could do a lot worse than a gas station parking lot.

Or maybe they couldn’t, but he was sick and tired of waiting for the perfect moment to arise only to get interrupted time and time again. All he had to do was seduce Derek for a while longer, maybe slip in a few of those innuendos the werewolf pretended to dislike but secretly adored, and _voilà_.

By the time they found a parking spot and stepped out of the car, stretching to get rid of all the pesky kinks in their backs, Stiles was grinning widely and buzzing with eagerness. He wondered if Derek knew what he had planned and wondered if he would object. And then the older man was leaning against the Camaro, mirroring Stiles’ actions from their first date, and Stiles forgot about plans in favour of admiring the view.

There were times when he wondered what a man like Derek – a werewolf, an alpha, a goddamned supermodel – could possibly want from a man like Stiles. Derek was everything a person could dream of having, minus the slight sourness and roughness, and for some reason he wanted _Stiles_.

It was one of the reasons why it had taken the younger man so long to realise his attraction wasn’t unrequited at all. He had spent so many months telling himself that Derek would never want to be with someone like him that he had missed all the signs, right up until Derek had leaned into him after their stupid game of Mario Kart. Maybe if they hadn’t been so oblivious earlier, they would have already gotten their first kiss.

Not that Stiles was going to let himself think about all the ‘ _what ifs_ ’. He had a wonderful relationship to enjoy, and he wasn’t going to let himself sour it by thinking about all their missed opportunities and their interrupted moments. What mattered was that they were together now, that they were going to kiss now, that they cared about each other and wanted each other even when the world seemed to be conspiring against them.

“Going to stand there all day?” Derek teased him, raising his eyebrows in a way that didn’t have butterflies flying around Stiles’ stomach, not at _all_. “Because I’m not going to stay here for longer than ten minutes, and you’ve already used up almost half of your time by staring at me.”

“Not my fault you’re so freaking beautiful,” Stiles grumbled, smiling fondly when the tip of Derek’s ears turned red, one of his only flustered tells as far as Stiles had noticed. “You know, this isn’t exactly what I had in mind when I pictured our first kiss away from Beacon Hills.”

“I mean, we could always wait until we reach Sacramento,” Derek pointed out, although he was already licking his lips as Stiles made his way to the other side of the car, finally the predator to Derek’s prey.

“I’m not waiting a second longer,” Stiles shook his head, before taking back his own words. “I mean, not a minute longer, because if there’s one thing I’ve learned about our kissing sessions or our moments or whatever-”

“There are no _moments_.”

“- it’s that they always need to start with a little… what did you call it again?” Stiles tapped his finger against his chin as though he had already forgotten what Derek had told him after their first date “Ah yes, _foreplay_.”

“Stiles,” Derek growled.

“Don’t growl at me, buddy,” Stiles grinned, resting of his hands on the car next to Derek’s head and letting the other one curl around his boyfriend’s hips. “Or keep growling, really, completely up to you. I won’t judge if that’s what your into, especially since I find it just as attractive as everything else about you. Have I ever told you that I could wax poetics about your face for days? In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve already done that to Scott a few times, much to his dismay.”

“Stiles, baby,” Derek whispered, his voice fond and slightly awed in what Stiles had only recently started to recognise as his _loving_ tone. Or at least caring. “You do realise we have to leave this place soon, and we won’t be able to do that if we get carried away in kisses or confessions of… Whatever it is you’re confessing to.”

“Oh I very much realise that,” Stiles smiled, satisfied with how well his plan was going. “I mean, I don’t really care if we make it to Sacramento as long as I can say I’ve finally kissed my boyfriend. The others are starting to keep a tally of how many times they’ve interrupted us so far, and I’m done with it.”

“God, I love it when you get all worked up,” Derek breathed out, and Stiles knew his plan was fully in motion.

He leaned in closer, not willing to take his time after all the almost-kisses they had had, just wanting his lips to be against Derek’s and their bodies to be pressed flush together, and wanting to breathe the same air as-

His phone rang sharply, and he knocked his forehead into Derek’s as he startled at the sound. He pushed himself away from the werewolf immediately, looking through his pockets in search of the offending device and glaring daggers at it as he took in Scott’s Caller ID. He picked up furiously, tears of frustration welling in his eyes as he realised he had once again missed his perfect window of time to kiss his boyfriend.

“What the fuck do you want, Scott?” He snarled into his phone, only feeling moderately bad for snapping at his best friend considering that Scott _knew_ he was taking a week-end off to spend some one-on-one time with Derek.

“ _Stiles_ …” Scott said quietly, and Stiles could almost imagine his grimace on the other end of the line. “ _Dude, I am so sorry to interrupt your week-end with Derek. You know I wouldn’t have called if this wasn’t important, and I know this sucks because you’ve been waiting for this all week, but Deaton just spotted a threat in the woods and we think it’s another pack and we need our alpha right now_.”

Derek’s eyes flashed red at the thought of another pack intruding on his territory, and Stiles knew they had to go back. They could never leave their pack behind, not if there was an urgent threat to deal with. His boyfriend looked at him with something akin to sadness in his eyes, and Stiles desperately tried to stop the tears from overflowing.

“We’ll be there in an hour and a half,” he choked out, hanging up before Scott could say anything else.

He buried his head in Derek’s chest for a few seconds, letting a few tears roll down his face and hoping it would stave off his sobs for the time being. His alpha rubbed his hands up and down Stiles’ back soothingly, but even that wasn’t enough to get rid of the pent-up anger and sadness and yearning battling inside Stiles’ mind. For once in his life, he liked someone who liked him back, and the world had decided to conspire against them.

He had just wanted one day, just _one day_ during which he wouldn’t have had to think about anyone other than himself and Derek.

“I’m sorry, baby,” his boyfriend whispered, but Stiles only shook his head and tightened their embrace for a second before letting go. “I know this isn’t how you wanted the week-end to go, but I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

“It’s not your fault,” Stiles murmured, not even lying. Derek was the only person he _didn’t_ blame for their current position. “But I’ll never say no to a little making up, especially if it means making out is involved.”

The joke was weak and an obvious attempt at letting go of his frustration, but Derek let it slide, squeezing Stiles’ hand comfortingly and letting their foreheads rest together for a minute longer before kissing his forehead in an echo of what Stiles really wanted. They pulled apart, and Stiles’ heart cried out at the loss of its other half.

It was fine, though. They would get there eventually, because Stiles cared about Derek too much to let this get in their way.

He would kiss his boyfriend, even if it meant he had to destroy the universe and its idiotic Fate first.

* * *

Stiles waited all of two days.

He let Derek and the rest of the pack deal with the intruders, adding his own input every once in a while and very pointedly ignoring Scott every time his best friend tried to talk to him. He didn’t so much as speak to his boyfriend during that time, except for a few greetings and the fleeting touches he couldn’t have escaped even if he had wanted to. He sat back and tried to ignore the way his heart was begging him to find Derek, spending his time with the rest of the human pack members to keep himself occupied.

It was torture, as it had been for the past few weeks – months, if he was being perfectly honest – but this time, he was determined. Well, even more determined than he had been before. This time, he didn’t care if the fucking president showed up to Derek’s loft; he was going to get his kiss, and he was going to get it _now_.

Now, or as soon as the threat was gone, hence the two days. Two days of sitting around and biting at his bottom lip every time Derek flashed his red eyes at him. Two days of jerking off as soon as he came home, imagining his boyfriend’s hands on him, imagining his boyfriend _kissing him_.

If he hadn’t been obsessed with kissing before – and he had sort of been, as much as a guy who had only kissed a girl once could be – he certainly would have been by the end of his and Derek’s cycle of interruptions. Because now all he could think about were Derek’s lips, the way they would feel against his mouth, the way their tongues would curl together, the way their hands would tighten around each other. All he could think about was how good it would be, because after all this time… After all this time, it _had_ to be perfect.

He didn’t even care about the rest of the pack and what they wanted to think about his and Derek’s relationship. They had lost their right to judge them as soon as they had started purposefully getting in their way – getting on their _nerves_. And if the nervous looks Lydia and Erica were sending him as Derek announced that they had finally gotten rid of the opposing pack were anything to go by, the girls knew _exactly_ what was going to happen as soon as the meeting was over.

Indeed, when Derek clapped his hands loudly – startling Isaac awake – and indicated the end of the meeting, Erica herded everyone out of the loft, accepting Stiles’ nod of gratefulness with a wink of her own. He would have to make sure she knew she was forgiven for her past actions, because getting the entire pack out of the loft was not an easy task.

“Where did everyone go?” Derek asked around a mouthful of his chocolate biscuits, his eyes wide and confused. Stiles should have been disgusted, but he only found it a little bit endearing, and a _lot_ attractive. Derek was too cute for words sometimes, despite his big bad alpha exterior.

“Erica got them out of here, since she saw what I’m about to do coming from about an hour away,” Stiles grinned sharply, stepping closer and closer to Derek as his boyfriend finished his biscuit, his eyes darkening as he understood where Stiles was going with his actions.

The younger man’s eyes flickered to the wall behind Derek for an instant, making sure there were no paintings hanging around that he hadn’t noticed and smiling when he found the surface blessedly empty. He was all for decorations, but what he had in mind wouldn’t really fit well with a bookshelf or rows upon rows of knick-knacks.

“Stiles,” Derek said softly, his words turning into a whine when Stiles stepped forward again, his movements deliberately slow. He had heard Erica lock the door behind her, and he had already turned both his and Derek’s phones off. With no distractions or interruptions possible, he would be damned if he wasn’t going to take his time in getting to his boyfriend.

They deserved this.

“Baby,” Derek breathed out, sounding desperate and needy and everything Stiles felt on the inside. “ _Please_.”

That did it for Stiles. He closed the distance between Derek and him, and then slammed the werewolf into the wall, relishing in the way Derek’s eyes flashed dangerously, a hint of pain but mostly pleasure reflected in those beautiful orbs. Not that he let himself get lost in his gaze for too long, because he had much more pressing things to do.

He slotted one of his legs between Derek’s and moaned when his boyfriend growled, letting his fingers dig into Stiles’ hips in a borderline-painful grip. Although Stiles really, _really_ wasn’t complaining. They panted against each other for a few moments, breathing in the fact that it was finally happening, and then they were crashing into each other with a passion Stiles hadn’t thought was possible.

Derek’s lips were as perfect as he had imagined. Their kiss started quickly, but the slide of their mouths was slow and tantalising and absolutely worth the noises that slipped past Stiles’ lips every few seconds. They moved in tandem, their hands clutching as they tried to climb into each other, as they tried to enjoy this moment they had been waiting for forever.

The kiss was a lot hungrier than Stiles had imagine their first kiss would be, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. He couldn’t, because he was sobbing against Derek, leaning into the other man as though he had never lived before this moment. They were still kissing, having barely stopped to breathe before Derek was biting down on Stiles’ bottom lip again, sucking it into his mouth and nipping lightly with his teeth, sending sparks of pleasure coursing through Stiles’ body.

With anyone else, he would have been ashamed of his tears, but Derek only slowed their kiss down and pressed light pecks to Stiles’ lips as he wiped away the younger man’s tears, murmuring words of praise and joy every time he took a breath. Stiles had no idea how he was holding himself up, but he thought he deserved a freaking award for his efforts.

After a few more minutes of mindless kissing, alternating between ravenous making outs and softer embraces, Stiles finally pulled away from Derek’s mouth long enough to stare into his boyfriend’s eyes.

He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting, but it certainly wasn’t the wave of tenderness that hit him as his eyes blinked open to catch Derek’s gaze. The older man was looking at him as though he wasn’t quite sure what he had done to deserve Stiles, his smile soft and gentle and everything Stiles had ever wanted, and it took him all of his self-control not to burst into another round of tears.

“I can’t- You’re- _Fuck_ , Derek,” he managed to get out, slapping his boyfriend’s shoulder lightly when the man chuckled, his eyes both teasing and fond. “Seriously, I have no idea why we didn’t decide to ignore everyone earlier and kiss right in front of them. It would have definitely been worth it.”

“Maybe,” Derek hummed, one of his hands slipping underneath Stiles’ shirt and coming up to rest against the younger man’s warm and naked skin. “But I’m pretty sure this was worth the wait, too. If I had known all I had to do was frustrate you enough to get you to slam me into a wall, I would have done it a long time ago.”

“Don’t expect this to be a regular thing,” Stiles said sternly, although they both knew he would give Derek whatever the alpha wanted if he asked kindly – or salaciously, depending on his mood. “Seriously, I’m pretty sure I hurt myself more than you did getting you here.”

“That would be because you forgot to take your hand off my back before pushing me against something you _knew_ was hard,” Derek said, his ears promptly turning a bright red as he realised what he had said. Stiles grinned, cupping his boyfriend’s cheeks and pressing another kiss to Derek’s lips, still not over how adorable his werewolf boyfriend really was.

“The wall isn’t the only thing that’s hard right now,” he said, dutifully playing his part and giggling when Derek groaned and canted his hips up eagerly. “So soon, really? We’ve barely only just had our first kiss, Derek, maybe we should wait a while longer before taking the next step.”

“And let our friends and family interrupt that as well?” Derek scoffed, his eyebrows flying up as he shook his head decisively. “Not a chance in the world. Now, do you want to keep me pegged here, or would you rather pull away so I can give you the blowjob of a lifetime?”

“Oh, Derek,” Stiles tutted, his smile widening when Derek’s stare gained another hint of arousal mixed with a healthy dose of fear. “You underestimate me if you think both those things can’t happen at the same time.”

He would make sure to show his boyfriend exactly _how_ such a feat was necessary, but first…

First, he was going to kiss Derek a thousand times more, just to make sure the gesture was imprinted in his mind, as it should have been for months now. He let himself breathe in his boyfriend’s scent, nuzzle against the werewolf’s neck, and press tiny kisses all over his face, delighting in the breathy laughter and small smiles he got out of Derek thanks to his ministrations.

Maybe Derek had been right. Maybe the wait had been worth it.

Although that definitely didn’t mean they were going to wait any longer to explore the rest of each other’s bodies, and Stiles made sure Derek was _very_ aware of that by the end of the night.

Stiles had been patient enough to wait for a kiss, but he loved Derek too much to wait for more.

**Author's Note:**

> Heya guys! Thank you so much for reading! I have been writing this fic for just about a week, trying to find the right burst of inspiration, and tonight the muse struck, so I hope you all enjoyed this nice piece of frustration upon frustration. Hopefully, the little scene at the end made up for it (; And a huge thank you to Em for sparking this idea; this entire fic was her fault for making me want to write an endless stream of almost-kisses. Also, none of these loving em fics are beta'ed so I apologise for any mistakes, I am far too lazy to go over my own work.
> 
> Love, Junie. 
> 
> (find me on [tumblr](https://hopesilverheart.tumblr.com/))


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